Secondary pupils need mental health support at school

A change in thinking is needed for Scotland to better address mental health, according to a report produced by young people from across the country.

The findings of Scotland’s first Youth Commission on mental he a l t h were p ub - lished yesterday following a 16- month project in which the views of 23 young people aged 15 to 25 with varying experiences of mental health services were heard.

S u p p o r t e d b y t h e S c o t - tish Association for Mental Health ( SAMH), the Scottish Government and Young Scot, the commission engaged with young people, service providers and other relevant sectors before publishing recommendations on how mental health services should be accessed and operated.

The commission made recommendations covering a number of areas, including education, community and public opinions, finance, policy and rights, and training.

In its recommendations, the commission said access to peer- to- peer support should be provided in every secondary school, with mental health education embedded within the curriculum.

It also said mental health first aid training should be a standard requirement for all organisations working with young people – bringing it in line with laws about physical first aid.

The commission highlighted that “funding is a key issue for services and organisations”, and said “a l ack of money impacts on services not being able to operate to the best of their ability”.

In i ts conclusions, i t said mental health must be taken seriously and insisted that its recommendations could help to provide “clear worldleading mental health services for young people”.

Commission member Neva Brown said: “I joined the Youth Commission because I’d seen too many people not get the help when they needed it, even when they had tried to access help.

“I al s o f el t with my own personal experience I’d be able to help so many people and stop them from going through what I had to.

“I hop e t he Yout h Commission allows more young people to know their rights regarding their mental health and makes s e r vi c e s more accessible to everyone, so noone is left to suffer alone.”

Minister for mental health C l a r e H a u g h e y s a i d t h e government will study the commission’s report.